You need to get some fat in your diet. Fat is a source of energy when carbohydrates are not available. It also helps keep a stable core body temperature, protects vital organs and allows your body to store fat-soluble vitamins. Although fat is important for all of these functions, some dietary fats are better than others. Nutrition facts labels provide the total fat content of foods. Total fat consists of both saturated and unsaturated fats, as well as trans fats.

Reading the Label

Reading the nutrition facts label can be confusing. There are several things you need to pay attention to, in addition to the fat content. Look at the very top of the label where it lists serving size and servings per container. For example, a pint of ice cream may list the serving size as 1/4 cup and have four servings per container. This is important information because if you look directly at the fat content without paying attention to the serving size, you wind up consuming more fat than you intended. The next nutrient on the list is the total calories per serving, and to the right of this number is the total calories from fat. Below the caloric information is the total fat content. Next to total fat you will see the percentage of your daily value, which is based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Below the total fat is the saturated fat and trans fat. Unsaturated fats are not always listed, but are included in the total fat grams.

Fat Recommendations

Fat should make up 20 to 35 percent of your total calories, the Mayo Clinic website explains. The average 2,000-calorie diet listed on all nutrition facts labels requires 44 to 78 grams of total fat for the day. All fats provide 9 calories per gram. If the nutrition facts label lists total fat as 10 grams per serving, this amounts to 90 calories from fat. This is nearly 5 percent of your total calories for the day, based on a 2,000-calorie diet.

Saturated and Trans Fats

Both saturated and trans fats are harmful for your body. Food manufacturers are required to list saturated and trans fat information on the nutrition facts label. These fats raise cholesterol levels, increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and increase your chances of developing heart disease, notes the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA. Saturated fats should make up no more than 10 percent of your total calories. For a 2,000-calorie diet, you can have up to 22 grams of saturated fat. There is no specific recommendation for trans fats, but you should limit your intake to 1 percent of your total calories. This amounts to about 2 grams of trans fats per day for a 2,000-calorie diet. Meat, dairy and seafood naturally contain saturated fat and some trans fat. Processed junk food and fried foods are also often high in trans fat. Avoid these types of fats as much as possible and replace them with unsaturated fats in your diet.

Unsaturated Fats

Unsaturated fats are healthier fat options. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, or MUFAs and PUFAs for short, are not required to be specified on nutrition facts labels. Some food manufacturers opt to list MUFAs and PUFAs to give credibility to their healthy food product. If MUFAs and PUFAs are not listed, simply subtract saturated and trans fats from the total fat grams. Any remaining grams of fat come from healthy unsaturated fats. MUFAs and PUFAs are especially beneficial because they can help stabilize cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure and reduce your overall risk of heart disease. Vegetable oils, avocados, peanuts, nuts and cold-water fish, like salmon, are all loaded with these heart-healthy fats.